LAHORE, June 11: Deposed chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry was accorded a warm welcome by lawyers, political activists and the civil society on his arrival at the airport here from Multan on Wednesday.

The Punjab government provided official protocol and full security to him.

Lawyers and workers of the PML-N, Tehrik-i-Insaaf, Jamaat-i-Islami, Khaksar Tehrik, Labour Party and Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party raised slogans as the deposed chief justice came out of the airport building.

They showered rose petals and presented bouquets to Justice Iftikhar who waved to the crowd but did not make any speech.

Some of the slogans raised on the occasion were: “Go Musharraf Go,” “The struggle will continue till the liberation of the judiciary,” “Give another push to the falling wall and the lovers of Musharraf”. Political activists were carrying flags of their parties.

Supreme Court Bar Association President Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and other leaders including Munir Malik, Hamid Khan, Rashid Rizvi, Baz Muhammad Kakar and Athar Hasanullah, accompanied the deposed chief justice from Multan.

Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan received the chief justice on behalf of the Punjab government. He was accompanied by PML-N leaders Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Deputy Speaker Rana Mashood, Mian Marghoob Ahmad and Mian Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman.

Mr Ahsan welcomed removal of barriers placed around the Parliament House in Islamabad and reiterated that the long march would be peaceful. “We will remain peaceful in Islamabad,” he said.

Rana Sanaullah said the provincial government was facilitating the march because it considered it to be the right of the lawyers to lodge their protest in a peaceful manner.

He said the federal government must hand over security of Islamabad to the Punjab government for a day if it feared any untoward incident at the culmination of the long march.

“We ensure that there will be no disturbances,” he said.

The lawyers were law-abiding and educated people and they would remain peaceful during the long march. Only resistance would lead to violence, he said.

Mr Sanaullah said either Nawaz Sharif or Shahbaz Sharif would see off the participants of the long march in Lahore on Thursday.

He said the provincial government had made elaborate security arrangements.

In Lahore, the PML-N has set up camps at every important crossing near the airport and on The Mall, and each of them was being supervised by an MNA of the party.

“The entire nation is taking part in the long march, because it does not belong only to the lawyers’ community. Lawyers are just spearheading it,” he said.

The motorcade of the deposed chief minister who was escorted by police and lawyers moved at a slow pace because of the welcoming camps near the airport.

He was scheduled to speak at a reception arranged by the Lahore High Court Bar Association, Lahore Bar Association, Supreme Court Bar Association and Tax Bar Association at the Lahore High Court premises in the night.

Our Correspondents in Multan, Khanewal add:

The long march, led by deposed chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and Supreme Court Bar Association President Aitzaz Ahsan, left Multan on Wednesday afternoon.

Chanting “Go Musharraf go” and other slogans, hundreds of lawyers, political workers, students, labourers and members of civil society left the high court building at about 3pm, though they were scheduled to depart at 10am.

Speaking to participants of the march here, renowned lawyer Ali Ahmad Kurd said there could be no strong parliament in the absence of an independent judiciary.

SCBA President Aitzaz Ahsan said that lawyers were fighting for the survival of the country.

“We are going to the Parliament House to press the government to honour its commitment and reinstate judges and prove that parliament of the country is sovereign and independent”.

“If Justice Dogar will try to issue a stay order against parliament’s decision to restore judiciary, he will face the lawyers’ wrath.”

Justice Iftikhar said that when he had taken the oath on June 30, 2005, as the Chief Justice of Pakistan he had decided to provide immediate justice to the people at their doorsteps and frequently used suo motu powers given to him by Article 184 (3) of Constitution to provide immediate relief to the people.

“Our survival as a nation is only possible in the supremacy of the Constitution, the rule of law and independence of judiciary.”

He said the lawyers’ movement had entered a crucial phase and though there was a tough time ahead for them, he was confident they would achieve their objective.

In Khanewal, local lawyers and members of civil society gave a warm welcome to long march participants on their arrival from Multan.

Lawyers, traders and political activists received the procession at the Lahore Mor from where it proceeded to the city and the District Bar Association hall.